Play More / Happy 50th, Little People!

I will be visiting my sister’s beautiful family this summer (New Mexico to Chicago, IL to New Hampshire via Amtrak), and am already anticipating days of fun with my four-year-old nephew and two-year-old niece.That in turn made me think of how we grown-ups play.I don’t mean adult play – golf or cocktail parties or, for pity’s sake, Sudoku.I mean real play, like we did as children: running, jumping, singing, imagining.

When I’m around kids, I’m always struck by how in the moment they are, and how rarely adults tap into that particular joy.I always tell myself that I’m going to remember to be like that more often.And I always forget.Not all adults want to play, obviously.But for those of us who do, how are we supposed to recapture the magic?

One thing I do is make my own cards for birthdays, holidays, special occasions.Don’t get me wrong; I’m no artist.But those hours spent with scissors and construction paper and gluesticks and crayons – sheer joy.I’m not thinking about the bills or the economy or my oldest cat’s illness.I simply hum, and cut, and color, and snicker quietly to (at?) myself, surrounded by snippets of discarded scrapbooking sheets, loving every single moment.

Recently I bought a couple of old Fisher Price Little People houses and their accoutrements on eBay.These were my sister’s and my favorite toys as children; we called them People-o’s.With the originals long since given away, I thought it would be a fun birthday gift for her (and me).Of course I had to get everything out and verify the contents and condition.Of course what I ended up doing was setting up bothhouses, and before I knew it, the People-o’s were having conversations.The People-o’s also made an appearance at a party the following week, and for a few of my friends, they were a big hit.

[And in the annals of “did you know?” – last weekend, the Little People celebrated their 50th anniversary.If only they were real, I’d have sent a (homemade) card!]

Full disclosure: I also do the occasional cartwheel.So how about it – do you still play?And how? Do tell…

2 Responses to "Play More / Happy 50th, Little People!"

I don’t like the new little people either, Lori. One of the best things about the originals was that they were sort of vague…no arms and legs, just a few lines to indicate facial features. That way, they could be anything we wanted (and they still can, if you’ve got about $50 and an eBay account!).